The Tyler's Place Podcast

From the Commander, Council of Kadosh (March, 2014)

In March, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, a time which honors the Patron Saint of Ireland. Much of his life is the subject of conjecture, and even the dates of his life are uncertain, other than that he lived in the mid to late 5th Century. Born in Great Britain and originally taken as a slave to Ireland, he subsequently escaped and later returned to the Emerald Isle as a missionary. He later served as a bishop, and has been termed, at one point, the Bishop of Armagh, Primate of all Ireland.

St. Patrick is credited with using the shamrock to illustrate the doctrine of the holy trinity, which explains in large part the use of the shamrock as a symbol of St. Patrick’s Day. Of course, the most famous legend surrounding St. Patrick is his banishment of all snakes from Ireland. Scientific evidence tells us that there never were any snakes in post-glacial Ireland, but that has never deterred the legend from perpetuating itself. Many theories exist as to how he became associated with this legend, but none can be proven over any other.

St. Patrick is buried at Down Cathedral, Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland. This has special significance to me, as it is the country from which my ancestors emigrated in the early 19th century.

March 17, widely accepted as the date of his death, marks the annual recurrence of St. Patrick’s Day. Throughout Ireland, it is a day of solemnity, and a holy day of obligation, but also a day of celebration. Feasts and parades are held in his honor each year.

In the United States, of course, St. Patrick’s Day is a day to celebrate one’s Irish heritage – whether or not one is actually Irish. It is a festive occasion, a day of libations and joy, a day for the “wearin’ of the green”, and of less than successful attempts to speak with an Irish accent. It is, to put it simply, a reason to have a party.

So be with us at our March stated meeting, as we take the chance to celebrate the Irish in all of us.